C-PORT Board of Directors and Management

The C-PORT Board of Directors is made up of C-PORT members who are experienced professionals from throughout the marine assistance industry. They each bring their own unique perspective to the Board to further the successes of the industry and its partners.

Working closely with the C-PORT Board of Directors is the Executive Staff. These professionals are tasked with the operation of the Association, addressing members' needs and assisting the Board of Directors with the continued growth and development of the Marine Assistance Industry.

Tina Cardone, Executive Director

Tina Cardone has decades of experience working within the Marine Assistance Industry. Beginning in the late 1980s, Tina worked closely with the Coast Guard learning about the new rules and regulations for the industry. She gained great insight into how an association supports its membership and principles through legislative actions, in meeting membership needs, and promoting the association’s ideals to the boating community. Her background gives her insight into how a marine business must juggle legislative requirements, employment needs and serving the boating community with profitability. Through this unique view, Tina is able to contribute to the continued growth and development of C-PORT and the Marine Assistance Industry it represents.

Tina has a B.A. in Political Science and enjoys the political system and has a fascination with the study of law. She enjoys writing and has written and collaborated on a number of published articles. Tina has cruised the Bahamas, Caribbean and made numerous crossings to Bermuda. Other voyages include cruising the Eastern U.S. from Florida to Maine, crossing to Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and the French Islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon.

After graduation in 1994 at the age of 18, I joined the US Coast Guard. I was stationed onboard USCGC Point Wells in Montauk, NY, USCG Station Islamorada, USCGC Venturous in St. Petersburg, FL and I was the Executive Petty Officer at USCG Station Dauphin Island. In 2004, I left the Coast Guard and purchased Sea Tow Destin. This was exciting and challenging as I worked to increase the number of memberships as well as build a reliable reputation for the company. In 2007, I expanded my business and purchased Sea Tow Pensacola. I worked to build this location as well and received several recognitions. I received two Outstanding Membership Growth Awards and an Outstanding Marketing of Box Programs Award my first year with this location.

I have assisted Sea Tow Disaster Teams that responded to Hurricans Ivan (2004), Dennis (2005) and Ike (2008). In 2009, I was awarded the Sea Tow Franchise of the Year Award at the Sea Tow annual conference. In 2010, I assisted in the clean up efforts surrounding the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. In 2012, I was blessed with my first child, a healthy baby boy. I plan to continue to operate these two Gulf Coast franchises with the hope of passing this passion for success and the love for the water on to my son.

Growing up on Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay, Phil has been a boater his entire life. He spent each summer cruising the waters around New England under both power and sail. In 1998, at the age of 18, he obtained his captain’s license and began working for Safe/Sea, TowBoatU.S. Narragansett Bay as a way to put himself through the University of Rhode Island. What began as a college job following his passion of being on the water has culminated in a career spanning two decades.

Phil is now co-owner of the business he began working for almost 20 years ago. He has served on various C-PORT committees over the years and is currently C-PORT’s representative on the NASBLA B.O.A.T. Program Advisory Council. He holds a 100-Ton Master for Near Coastal Waters with Commercial Assistance Towing and Radar Endorsements. As an ambassador of the commercial assistance industry, Phil looks forward to helping continue the growth of the industry through education and outreach.

Growing up in Wisconsin, Jon has always had a calling to the water. He grew up fishing and boating on the waters of Lake Michigan and Green Bay. In 1994 Gridley joined as a First Mate aboard a sport fishing charter boat out of the Port of Sheboygan and shortly thereafter, he knew he wanted to become a Captain. In 1996, at the age of 23, Jon received his 50 Ton Master of the Great Lakes license with Commercial Assistance Towing endorsement. He continued these duties until he relocated to the south in 2000.

In 2008, Gridley purchased all interests in Lake Tow Inc and teamed up with Howard Kaplan (Sea Tow Lake Norman/Wylie, Kerr/Gaston, Smith Mountain Lake) and formed Sea Tow Clarks Hill Lake. Currently, Jon is sole owner of Sea Tow Clarks Hill Lake and Sea Tow Lake Oconee. He is the 2011 recipient of the AFRAS (Association for Rescue at Sea) C-PORT Lifesaving Award. Jon still has a passion for being on the water, but now, assisting boaters makes it even more enjoyable.

Dale Plummer, a lifetime Chesapeake Bay boater, left Corporate America in 2007 to begin his professional marine assistance career. He is a USCG licensed Master Captain with a Commercial Assistance Towing endorsement and began towing for TowBoatU.S. Baltimore/Middle River/ Baltimore Marine Recovery in 2007. Dale’s 20 plus years of diving experience has been instrumental in the growth of salvage operations for BMR. His 20 years of business, marketing and organizational knowledge enabled Dale to purchase BMR/TowBoatUS Baltimore/Middle River in January of 2011.

Dale is President of Chesapeake Marine Towing and Assistance Association (CMTAA), a regional chapter of C-PORT, and an active member of the Marine Trades Association of Baltimore County. Dale believes that corporate responsibility and professionalism must extend to all trades. He is a leader in the marine community lending support to local law enforcement and the U.S. Coast Guard and he proactively works to protect the valuable natural resources of the Chesapeake Bay.

Board of Directors

Rob ButlerBig Bay Marine Services/TowBoatU.S. San Diego
San Diego, CA

Robert started as a Salvage Diver for Vessel Assist San Diego in 1988 while operating a charter boat company out of San Diego and Mexico. In 1990 Robert married his wife Brandi and soon after started Vessel Assist Tacoma in the Pacific Northwest. While in Washington, Robert starred operations in Everett and Seattle. In 1999 Robert sold Vessel Assist Tacoma/Seattle and purchased Vessel Assist San Diego.

Robert has navigated on every coastal waterways in the Continental US, Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico calibrating radio towers for the Rescue 21 Project. Robert is been married and has two daughters, Courtney and Hannah. Robert has been an active member of C-PORT since 1995.

As a child Phil Delano grew up racing small sailboats on Central California lakes. In the early 1980's he and his family cruised the waters off the west coast of Mexico, mostly in the Sea of Cortez. Phil did more sailboat racing off the coast of Ventura in the late 1980's and acquired his USCG License in 1989. His first job as a Captain was a water taxi/ferry in Channel Islands Harbor. In 1990 Phil and his father became contractors for Vessel Assist and ran towboats out of Ventura, Channel Islands, and Santa Barbara Harbors.

Phil attended the California Maritime Academy during the mid 1990's and worked for the Vessel Assist company in the California Delta to help pay the bills of college. He opened the first Vessel Assist company in Monterey Bay in 1998. A year later Phil left Monterey Bay to take over Vessel Assist operations in the San Francisco Bay. Three years later our company added the California Delta area. Phil states he loves this business and “they will have to pry the wheel and throttles from my cold dead hands.

John DonaldsonD&H Marine/Sea Tow SebastianGrant, FL

John is a native of Cape May, NJ with over 30 years experience on the water. He served in the US Navy immediately following his high school graduation. Donaldson went on to study Marine Biology and Marine Resources Management. His towing life began as a diver and on-call oil spill response captain in the Delaware Bay. In 2006, after working in parasail and teaching, Donaldson joined Sea Tow Naples as director of operations. In 2013, he and his wife, Amy, became partners in the Sebastian franchise.

John and Amy reside in Grant, Florida where they are active not only in their assistance towing business, but in giving back to their community. They support various causes through charitable contributions, including their annual sponsorship of the Sebastian Exchange Club’s Blue Water Open Charity Fishing Tournament, the proceeds of which benefit the prevention of child abuse. Outside of work, the couple enjoys the outdoors, being on the water and spending time with their two children.

John understands the challenges facing the marine assistance industry and wants to be "part of the solution".

Greg DreischmeyerCat Tow Inc./TowBoatU.S. CatalinaAvalon, CA

Greg was born and raised in San Diego, CA. Greg was always on the water and around boats. He started working at West Marine when he was still in high school, eventually moving over to Boaters World. While working there, Greg met the owners of Sea Tow San Diego and eventually secured a position as a deckhand.

When Greg was 19, he had logged enough sea time and completed the master’s course to receive his USCG credential. He spent the next 6 years working at Sea Tow San Diego and also did some work in Newport Beach. Greg was also studying to became an EMT. He worked part time for Rural/Metro San Diego responding to 911 calls. After he completed a Paramedic program the winter of 2008 and working another year part time on the ambulance, Greg decided to focus solely on towing and took over all of Sea Tow San Diego’s boat operations from 2009-2011. When Sea Tow San Diego went through a change of ownership, Greg moved and began to work with Vessel Assist Catalina in March of 2012. A year later, he was promoted to operations manager to oversee the entire fleet and became a partner in Vessel Assist Catalina on January 1, 2014.

Greg said he wants to be involved with C-PORT’s mission because “if we want to make this industry better, safer, more profitable and uphold the public image of all commercial towers, it's going to take a team of dedicated people. One thing is for sure, if we do nothing, nothing will get done, so I'm trying to do something!”

Terry HillPotomac Marine/TowBoatU.S. PotomacWoodbridge, VA

Terry Hill has been active in the marine industry since 1975. Terry worked in his family’s marina from 1975 to 1983. He became a USCG licensed Master in 1985 and began moving boats up and down the East coast and now holds a 100 ton Master of Towing license with unlimited radar endorsement. In 1999 Potomac Marine branched out into the towing and salvage serving the upper Potomac River in the nation’s capital and now operates as TowBoatU.S. Potomac Marine.

Terry has been a member of C-PORT since 2003 and though only a member for a relatively short period Terry has become deeply involved and was elected to the Board in 2004 and elected Chairman in 2005 to 2009 and again in 2014 to 2016. It is Terry’s ambition to elevate C-PORT to a more visible level with federal and especially state and local authorities. Terry has been an advocate for the towing and salvages industry in working with local, state, and federal agencies both locally and nationally. In this role he has also worked to advocate good working relations with maritime insurance carriers and salvors through education and mentoring.

Anthony NouryHawser LLC/Sea Tow CharlestonCharleston, SC

Anthony considers himself the luckiest man alive. He married his college sweetheart in 2001 and started a family is blessed with two beautiful children. He is privileged to live and work in the most beautiful waterfront community in the US.

After earning a B.S. degree from Lander University he began a seventeen year corporate career via several Fortune 500 companies. In 2005, he wanted to try his hand at “small business” as a career change and purchased his Sea Tow franchise. As owner/operator of Sea Tow Charleston, he works with six talented and dedicated captains whom provide the commercial response to our customers in the “Lowcountry” of South Carolina. In 2010, two Sea Tow Charleston captains received recognition as recipients of C-PORT’s Meritorious Service Award. Our captains have also received commendation by receiving Sea Tow Services International’s “Above and Beyond” award in 2009 and 2010 for helping boaters in grave need. He feels proud and privileged to be associated with such an outstanding group of some of the finest captains in the business.

Captain Roger Slade has been a professional mariner since 1967. A former Coast Guardsman, Roger operates Vessel Assist Port Hadlock in Washington State. Roger states, “The years I have spent in the Marine Assistance Industry make everything that came before seem like prep-school. It is and has been a pinnacle privilege to work with, learn from, and serve the finest people anywhere on the water.”